OSCAs

2016 LRC OSCAs

2015 LRC OSCAs

Leicestershire & Rutland Cricket are pleased to announce the 6 winners of the local NatWest OSCAs who will now be considered by the ECB for the national awards which take place at Lords Cricket Ground on Monday 11th October 2014. The 6 winners are;

Winner – Heartbeat of the Club

Richard Holdridge– Nominated by his club, Countesthorpe CC who had this to say

“Richard has been at the club for a number of years and he is invaluable. He is the club secretary, he runs the clubs disability team, runs the bar and managers the hiring of the club house and assist with the preparation of the ground. If it was not for Richard the club would not be in the position it is and continue to grow. Richard does all this along with supporting his local church and is the historian for Leicestershire CCC”.

Winner – Get The Game On

Paul ‘Gus’ Geary- Nominated by his club Newtown Linford CC who had this to say

‘He is into his 11th season as groundsmen, former player and committee member spends on average 30 hours a week at Newtown Linford CC prepare the wicket, mowing the outfield, service or fixing ageing machinery, cutting hedges, watering plants, wheeling covers on and off to name but a few. Gus openly admits he boasts an ‘office window most can only dream of’ but come rain or shine; he does what it takes to get the game on, and is usually the last one to leave on match days.

Winner -Lifetime Achiever

David Buxton- Nominated by his club Kegworth Town CC who had this to say

“2015 marks David’s 50th year as club treasurer, a role he took on whilst still playing for the club in 1966. He has been responsible for controlling the clubs finances ever since, which includes producing annual balance sheets, organising external audits and ensuring the clubs has never once been challenged over late payment of bills. He also participates in CricketForce, ground committee and fundraising at the club, without this knowledge and hard work at the club would not be in a stable position it is today.

Winner – NatWest CricketForce

Brooksby Melton College- Nominated by Melton Mowbray CC who had this to say

“ The team of woodwork and construction students under the guidance of tutor Ian Sarget designed and built not only the essential new external doors for the club house but also new frames and a complete set of security shutters to replace the only one which were all but hanging off their hinges. The Sturdy benches are providing in valuable to all our visitors and supports and I am sure they will see many decades of cricket to come at the club”

Winner- Officiating

Gill Loveridge- Nominated by Mark Barber Sileby Town CC who had this to say

“Gill has carried out several roles at Sileby Town since first getting involved some 20 years ago. Gill first begun as a coach/scorer with our junior section and continued in this way for several years. Gill is a key advocate and driver of women’s and girls cricket at the club. Gill administers and submits the women’s team results to play-cricket and always in a timely and effective manner. Gill continues to score for the clubs Women’s XI, 3rd XI and under 17s with an excellent attitude. Gill is always keen to pass on her knowledge and has helped several young members of the club to learn how to score and the intricacies of scoring in different formats of the game”

Winner- Young Volunteer

Ethan Hawkins- Nominated by his club Cropston CC who had this to say

“For the past three seasons Ethan has been Junior Co-ordinator at Cropston as well as being a member of the coaching group on a Friday night coaching sessions. As junior co-ordinator he oversees all of our junior teams from u10s-u17s ensuring that each team manager is made aware of his duties are furnished with the correct information and equipment. He manager’s u11s and u15s whilst finding time to play on Saturday’s and Sunday’s.”

2015 LRC NatWest OSCAs brought to you by

Cricket is a sport, like many others, which relies heavily on the volunteers that run it. From your club chairmen and groundsmen, to the junior coaches and officials, there are many people who give up their time so that cricket can be played at local community clubs. There are also countless volunteers in the local community supporting cricket to go ahead in schools, community groups and informal settings.

The NatWest OSCAs are designed to recognise the work, commitment and positive impact of these key individuals and are now open for nominations with some exciting new categories for 2015. The categories shown below have been altered to reflect the importance of retaining and increasing participation levels in cricket and we have included the judging criteria below to help you when completing the nomination form.

Our County winners will be recognised at the Leicestershire and Rutland Cricket League dinner and will be invited to the national NatWest OSCA event held at Lords Cricket Ground on Monday 12th October.

The 7 NatWest OSCA nomination categories for 2015 are:

Heartbeat of the Club – This award is for that special volunteer that your club simply couldn’t do without, often the roles they carry out are behind the scenes. They often undertake a number of different roles, and are always there to lend a hand

Get the Game On – Is designed to highlight the “game day” contribution that is made by a key volunteer at your club. They are often the proactive person who is instrumental in going the extra mile to ensure the game is played rather than than it being called off

Leagues – This award is aimed at recognising the outstanding contribution made by leagues which help and support an increase in participation and getting more people playing more

Lifetime Achiever – This individual will have made an outstanding difference to their cricket club, league, board or local cricket community over a significant number of years

NatWest CricketForce – A club who has galvanised their members to support NWCF, gained support from local and national business, as well as linking with the local community in the recruitment of volunteers for club

Officiating (Umpires and Scorers) – This award is looking for an official who has visibly increased the quality of officiating and standard player satisfaction of the cricket within their own Club, League or County

Young Volunteer – This award is designed to highlight and show the fantastic contribution that young volunteers can make within the game

Completed nomination forms will need to be returned to Laura Joyce no later than Sunday 19th July. If you are unsure which category to nominate in, please leave this blank and we will put them in the most appropriate one.

2014 NatWest OSCAs

Leicestershire & Rutland Cricket are pleased to announce the 7 winners of the local NatWest OSCAs who will now be considered by the ECB for the national awards which take place at Lords Cricket Ground on Monday 6th October 2014. The 7 winners are;

The Winner in the Behind the Scenes Category

Bob White – Nominated by his club, Wakerley & Barrowden CC who had this to say about Bob:

“Bob has been with the club since 1987 and has undertaken various roles. Starting as Secretary and then Captain for 10 years, he then took over as Chairman and oversaw the move to the Grantham and Rutland league. He has spent time guiding young players, and alongside his other roles is the clubs groundsman, organises training sessions and fundraisers. It is evident to all involved that without him the club would not exist”

The Winner in the Building Partnerships Category;

Richard James – Nominated by his club Sileby Town CC, who had this to say about Richard:

“Richard has been involved at the club since 1990 and has called upon contacts to develop the Mill lane venue. Richard has overseen NatWest Cricket Force events, managed the Junior section and forged partnerships with neighbouring clubs to help develop and integrate junior players into senior teams. Richard has established links with local sponsors and funding agencies to help develop and extend the facilities at the ground”

The Winner in the Leagues & Boards Category;

Paul Whiteman – Nominated by the Leicestershire and Rutland Cricket League, who had this to say about Paul:

“Paul sits on the management committee for the new league having been Secretary of the old Senior league. He sat on the steering group that drove the merger of the 3 leagues and has helped to transform amateur cricket locally. Through discussions with players, umpires and administrators he strove to ensure as many as possible understood the benefits of change, providing opportunities for them to have their say. Paul continues to umpire within the new league and is league representative for 6 Divisions. He’s an effective go-between enabling a clear two way communication channel between the League and the clubs/players”

The Winner in the NatWest CricketForce Category;

Derby College – Nominated by Kegworth Town CC, who had this to say about the college:

“Clive Smith and his team of construction students designed and built a brick structure for our electronic scoreboard which was previously fixed to wooden gate posts. The students completed all work including foundations and brickwork to a very high standard, providing us with an outstanding facility for years to come and enhancing the appearance of the scoreboard. The expertise of the college students under the supervision of Brickwork Tutor Clive Smith was provided free of charge and with all materials being funded by the England & Wales Cricket Board in conjunction with the Jewson partnership has resulted in a huge cost saving for the club. The project has been hugely beneficial for both the club and students who have gained valuable experience”

The Winner in the Officiating Category;

KevinSmyth – Nominated by John Upton, who had this to say about Kevin:

“Kevin has coordinated the weekly umpire appointments, assigning umpires across the top 4 divisions. The task requires good organisation skills but most importantly the ability to adapt to changing availability, something that happens on a weekly basis. He’s involved in collating umpire match reports and will coordinate relevant parties to action the feedback provided regarding pitch quality or disciplinary requirements. A very experienced umpire qualified to level 3, he’s regularly found mentoring and coaching newly qualified umpires helping to develop their skills. A very approachable character who is more than willing to share his knowledge and experience with those aspiring to support the game in the future”

The Winner in the Young Volunteer Category;

Chris Dickinson – Nominated by Heather Beattie and his club Great Dalby CC, who had this to say about Chris:

“Every Wednesday night Chris supports the club’s coaches to deliver fun, engaging, inspiring and stimulating coaching sessions. Chris has also volunteered at Great Dalby Primary School to offer a cricket provision during lunch breaks and after-school clubs. The extra opportunities that has Chris has provided in the school have allowed more children to access cricket than ever before. The experience that Chris has received throughout his time volunteering has added value to him as a person”

The Winner in the Lifetime Achiever Category;

Paul Ashton – Nominated by his club, Wigston Town CC, who had this to say about Paul:

“Paul has been a player and ‘doer’ for Wigston Town for 42 years. He was Secretary and Treasurer for many years and has been club chairman for 10+ years. He was key in converting farmland into the current cricket ground, helping raise money and getting his hands dirty doing the work. The work of Paul and others has ensured the sustainability of the club for the past 20 years. In addition he assists in ground preparation, maintenance/repair of machinery and is a director of the Meadows Sports Association (administrative body running the sports ground). Recently this has seen him involved with moves to ‘save’ the ground from being sold. He does all this as the sole provider for a disabled daughter following the sad death of his wife. He often helped the club’s juniors and his sons have followed suite and are heavily involved with the development of the club’s Kwik’s.

He does not seek any appreciation for the work he does much of which goes unnoticed”

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The Leicestershire & Rutland Cricket team is divided into two distinct delivery strands – Growth and Participation working towards achieving our vision of ‘Inspiring people to choose and enjoy a lifelong involvement in cricket’.
We are dedicated to promoting the game of cricket at all levels and work in partnership with a wide variety of professional and recreational cricketing bodies and other appropriate agencies within Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland.